Comment:

Part of the power in Guy Clark's work is the homespun simplicity of his style. Some songs bang around like fancy, flashy sports cars, but his tunes reach their destination like a good, old reliable pickup — an American make, of course. It's the everyday details lesser writers leave out that make Clark's songs ring true. He counts his blue shirt and old boots among the "Stuff That Works," but you could easily throw his carefully crafted tunes onto the list too. Staring down his own mistakes unblinkingly, he doesn't utter a word of regret, merely musing "Maybe I Can Paint Over That." And his deceptive ease in depicting a woman leaving bad love behind on "She Ain't Going Nowhere" might make you wonder whether he could've slipped into screenwriting during his early stint in L.A.